Feb. 5, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - The Penn State women's tennis team will travel to Huntington, W.Va. this weekend for two dual matches at the Huntington Tennis Club at Marshall University. The team will face No. 56 South Alabama Saturday at 2 p.m. and No. 45 Marshall Sunday at 11 a.m.
"Our ultimate goal is improvement, so we have been trying to make some adjustments from our prior matches," said head coach Dawna Prevette. "We are excited to have an opportunity to play two ranked teams."
The Nittany Lions (2-1) opened their season with a 6-1 victory over Bucknell on Jan. 17, followed by a 5-2 win over Montana State on Jan. 24. In their first match against a ranked opponent, the Lions fell to then-No. 45 Boise State by a 7-0 margin.
Senior Dorothy Dohanics (Pittsburgh, Pa.) leads the Nittany Lions with 2-1 records in both singles and doubles. In the season opener against Bucknell, Dohanics defeated Ashley Globerman in straight sets in No. 5 singles, 6-0, 6-2 and went on to defeat McKenzie Hilmer of Montana State the following weekend in the No. 5 spot, 6-3, 6-4. Dohanics had two convincing No. 3 doubles wins while paired with freshman Maria Prishlyak (Kiev, Ukraine), topping Globerman and Dara Dwojewski of Bucknell 8-3, and Laura Villegas and Andrea De La Torre of Montana State, 8-3.
Junior Lauren McCarthy (Danbury, Conn.) is 2-1 playing in the No. 3 and 4 singles spots. Paired with sophomore Denisa Zobeideh (Weston, Fla.), McCarthy has also compiled a 2-1 record in doubles competition. Senior Leyla Morzan (Vancouver, British Columbia) has a 2-1 record for the spring season playing in the No. 5 and 6 singles positions.
South Alabama closed out the 2008 season with a 19-5 record, finishing in the Sun Belt Conference tournament. The Jaguars enter this weekend ranked No. 56 in the nation with a 2-1 record. Senior Michaela Babicova compiled a 22-7 record last season and was named an All-Sun Belt Conference player as a sophomore and junior. Senior Sylvanie Spangenberg finished the 2008 season ranked eighth in the ITA South Region for singles after going 18-3 at the No. 1 position. The Jaguars lead the all-time series 1-0, after defeating Penn State during the 2001 season.
Marshall is ranked No. 46 in the nation and currently holds a 3-2 record. The Herd compiled a 17-9 record in 2008. The team is led by senior Kellie Schmitt, the nation's No. 33 singles player and the reigning two-time Conference USA Player of the Year. The Nittany Lions and the Herd have met seven times, with Marshall leading the series 4-3.
Following the trip to Huntington, the Nittany Lions return to Happy Valley for two home matches next weekend. The Lions will take on No. 35 Virginia Commonwealth Friday, Feb. 13 at 5 p.m. and No. 40 Denver Sunday, Feb. 15 at 10:30 a.m. at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center. Admission to the matches is free.